Implantable medical devices (“IMDs”) exhibit growth in terms of:
a) the development of new devices which perform functions not previously performed;
b) the development of more sophisticated devices that replace previous simpler models; and
c) the number of implanted units per unit time.
Some devices perform “mission critical” functions—i.e. they stimulate heart, or brain, or deliver powerful drugs.
The devices are designed to function largely autonomously. That is, they interact with the patient in whom they are implanted (“the IMD owner”), and interact with an MD only on the infrequent occasions when the MD is present.
From time to time, the actions of these devices may result in unintended and/or harmful consequences due to:                a) improper or suboptimal programming of the device by a physician or technician;        b) a change in the condition of a patient, such that what was appropriate programming in the past, is no longer appropriate given the patients altered medical condition;        c) malfunction of the device itself;        d) malfunction of a sensor which provides information to the device; and        e) electromagnetic interference.        
Under these circumstances, it is desirable to have a means of very rapidly addressing a malfunction or pseudo-malfunction [e.g. suboptimal programming], e.g. by reprogramming the device so that in the short term, one or more undesirable actions are prevented. Though the patient may go to a physician's office or seek help in an Emergency Room, these actions may require hours to days to execute. On the other hand, the ability to remotely communicate with an implantable device, and to control its function remotely, can provide a solution that is available in minutes or seconds, and can provide real-time corrections as well.
The present application addresses various aspects of the communications between an IMD and a remotely located medical professional. Whereas the preferred embodiment of the invention is an IMD, the inventive concepts described herein may be applied to other devices—medical and non-medical—as well.